Went on a nostalgia trip and saw Kittie at the Academy 3 in Brum on Friday. Last saw them in 1996 in a room much the same size as the one they played this time. Only 150ish people too for a four band line-up for a tenner. Never Forever and Malefice were OK - perhaps weirded out by having to start at 6pm to beat curfew at 10 - but find of the day was metalcore/post-hardcore etc band As I Day Today who had a good gig. The sisters Lander and their compatriot Kittie cats got a few peeps going in a moshpit but it all seemed a bit lacklustre. Full props to bassist Ivy Vujic though. Best whirling hair since early-Jason Newsted :-)

On Friday i went to a concert that was organised by the newpaper i write a load of shit for, the Reykjavik Grapevine, called Grapevine Grassroots. They had the acts ThizOne, Arnljótur and Felonious Monk playing. Lots of tape loops, dub electronics and fuzzed out hip-hop beats.

friday i went to a great thrash show, ELDERS had their tape release as the openers for an older crowd drawing stoner/doom band at a dive bar. when they played we brought the dancing and people looked PIIIISED haha

last night i saw this really weird anarcho folk band BLACK BIRD RAUM play at a mini fest. accordian, acoustic guitar, banjo, washboard and stand up washbin bass. no amplification and everyone sang. it wwas surprisingly powerful, and a ton of fun. other bands played too, but they were the best. check it out, they are nice people and on tour heading east from PHX right now.

Not seeing much music in the near future or recently for that matter ( last band I saw was The Get Up Kids), but I am seeing Kathy Griffin perform next month, which I'm stoked for. Also checking out Chelsea Handler do stand-up/speak around my birthday, which I'm excited for too.

bought tickets for henry rollins spoken word for the lady's valentines day gift. i think he is alright, but she has been a huuuge fan since she was like 12. im honestly pretty fucking shocked how expensive his show is.

Saw Glassjaw on sunday.It was... dissapointing, but I've been waiting to see them for something like 7 years. So that's to be expected. They were still very, very good though,the support bands (Pulled Apart By Horses and Shapes) basically blew them off the stage. So it was still a good night.

The other week I saw Future of the Left/Kong/Chickenhawk faces were very nearly rocked clean off.

The future holds Silver Mt Zion, Errors and Grails. It's going to be a good year.

Was one of about 40,000 people who rocked out to AC/DC last night. Excellent concert. Probably one of the best I've seen and heard. Got Isis, Meshuggah, Amanda Palmer, Converge and the Mountain Goats lined up over the next few months. Stoked that Wellington, the city I consider to be home, is finally getting a good amount of international gigs that I have an interest in seeing. Also seeing Neil Gaiman speak the day after Amanda Palmer. Anybody know what he's like as a speaker?

@joe.distort: I'm surprised that Henry Rollins is expensive. He did a spoken word show last year and it was very well priced (for my part of the world). Weird.

I'm off to hear Music writer Dave Tompkins, author of the forthcoming book "How to Wreck a Nice Beach: The Vocoder from World War II to Hip Hop", presents a history of the vocoder as it has evolved from a military device into a major element in electronic music.